Cleaner Sports Drink Looks To Enter the Market

Published on March 22, 2019

Cleaner Sports Drink Looks To Enter the Market

This year, you may be embarking on a resolution that has you sweating it out at the gym. You may be an athlete yourself or you may have a young athlete at home. In all cases, there will be sweating, loss of electrolytes and the need to replace both liquids and those lost electrolytes. Every TV, magazine and online ad is pushing Gatorade, Powerade and newcomer BodyArmor. The lie that you are told is that athletes use these products and you need them too.

The truth is that while you, your kids and athletes do need to replenish, restore and regain liquids and electrolytes lost during exercise, there are many ingredients in leading sports drink brands that you do not need and that can, in fact, be harmful. These big name sports drinks often contain extra added sugar in the form of processed sugar, high fructose corn syrup (yes, still), “natural” added cane sugar and juice concentrates. The majority of these brands also use chemical dyes to give you that bright red, blue, green or weird milky white color they call “Ice”. Along with preservatives, you are drinking a cocktail of chemicals that can reduce your effectiveness in the gym and on the field.

What’s the solution? Just now entering the market is a new company, Momentum Power Foods, with its signature product Regain. You can regain your fluids and momentum with a mix of coconut water, tart cherry juice, citrus fruit juices and pink Himalayan salt. Regain contains nothing from concentrate because from concentrate means “added sugar”. Regain also does not contain chemical colors, sugar substitutes or preservatives. There are only 4 ingredients and all are either non-GMO and/or organic. Current taste testing results show that people prefer Regain seven to one over leading brands. (https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GTMQ8YS)

Let’s take a look at the ingredients in leading brands and compare them to Regain.

Added Sugars

Added sugars in any form whether it be processed white sugar, cane sugar, high fructose corn syrup or added during the concentration process are not good for us. Processed sugar can cause weight gain, has been linked to acne, can increase risk for heart disease and diabetes and may even increase your risk of cancer. Too much sugar can lead to obesity, inflammation and insulin resistance which can increase your risk for cancer (healthline.com). Lastly, too much sugar can cause fatty liver. The liver processes sugar and turns it into energy but it has its limits and when you consume too much sugar, what is not converted to energy is converted to fat. This may slow or even reverse your weight loss goals and slow down athletes.

Currently the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that we get no more than 10% of our calories from sugar and further states that a reduction to 5% would have additional health benefits. If you are on a 2200 calorie nutrition plan that means 220 calories total for the day “can” come from added sugar but 110 is better. Let’s see how each of the leading brands match up to Regain. Below is a comparison of 20oz bottles of each drink.

Figure 1: All stats are compiled from the respective brand’s websites.

What if you drink G2 or Powerade Zero?

Both contain sucralose and acesulfame potassium, artificial (chemical) sugar substitutes. Sucralose, often known as Splenda, is basically chlorinated sugar and has been known to have multiple side effects As well as increases in weight gain and fat storage, increase in appetite and increase in cravings for carbs. Your brain relies mostly on carbohydrates and when it thinks it’s getting them actually does not, cravings arise. In addition to this, sucralose is also known for causing diarrhea, gas and bloating, destroying your gut flora, preventing absorption of medications, causing headaches and some people have reported allergic reactions. (Healthyfocus.org)

Below is a chart of common ingredients and their known side effects. Regain contains none of these ingredients.

Citric Acid – Sodium Citrate:

This was cited on everydayhealth.com under drug side effects:

“You should not use this medication (citric acid – sodium citrate) if you have kidney failure, severe heart damage (such as from a prior heart attack), Addison’s disease (an adrenal gland disorder), high levels of potassium in your blood (hyperkalemia), or if you are severely dehydrated or have heat cramps.

Though some phosphates have been shown to improve athletic performance, potassium phosphate is not one of them. Sodium citrate and phosphoric acid have no effect on sports performance. Regain gets its preservatives from lemons or limes (citric acid) and pink Himalayan salt.

How Bad Are Food Dyes?

Food dyes have been documented as a health hazard. Read this information from the Environmental Working Group on Red #40:

“FD&C RED 40 ALUMINUM LAKE: In industrial production of colorants, the term “lake” is applied to pigments or dyes that are precipitated with metal salts such as aluminum, calcium, barium, or others. Most lake pigments are synthetically produced from coal tar or petroleum.”

Red #40 and other food dyes have been linked to cancer because they contain compounds such as benzidine and 4-aminobiphenyl. Food dyes have also been associated with behavioral issues in children. Hyperactivity, learning impairment, irritability and aggressiveness has been seen in observational research and double-blind studies. Children are often diagnosed with ADHD, however European studies of children between the ages of 3 and 8 have shown a correlation to aggressive behavior and restlessness when given beverages with food dyes in them. Seen in more frequency is non-life -threatening allergies to these dyes.

What Does Science Say?

Many will say, “All these ingredients are generally regarded as safe by the FDA.”

What scientific studies are starting to do now is measure the impact of all these ingredients combined. This is a relatively new process and has not widely been applied to foods already on the market. We often see drug interaction warnings for medication but until recently it has not been used with food items. There are few tests for synergistic toxicity which is the phenomenon where the combination of toxic substances can be greater than the sum of its parts. In my own experiences talking to those who work in science labs, there is little testing of how things work together as we are a culture that wants to put blame on one single thing for a particular outcome. The best example is the theory that cancer must be caused by X. Studies never look to see if X, Y and Z might be what brings about cancer. Perhaps more science facilities will adopt this method of research and it will reveal the dangers of chemicals in combination with one another and change the food and beverage industry.

Why Regain?

If more laboratories start testing for synergistic toxicity, we will be ahead of the game with our products. Simply put, Regain does not contain any of the ingredients listed above. Everything put into Regain is from its natural source. Our citric acid comes from citrus fruit. Our salt comes straight from the earth. The tart cherry juice and coconut water have nothing added to them. Every ingredient will be organic, non-GMO or both. This means a shorter shelf life but that is on us to make sure you are getting a quality product on time. We are not all about profit, we genuinely care about getting a better product on the market.

What really separates Regain from leading brands is the addition of tart cherry juice. Tart cherry has been shown to reduce muscle soreness, speed up muscle recovery and reduce oxidative stress and inflammation after exercise according to a 2010 study published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports. This helps you recover even better. Tart cherry has also been shown to reduce the risk of cancer.

We also genuinely care about the environment and sustainability and this is evident in all phases of the production of our product. We plan to bottle in the most sustainable way. We will accomplish this by bottling in glass as it is infinitely recyclable and even easier to reuse. Studies show that only 28% of glass is recycled globally. The main reason is that glass is not put in the recycle bins properly in order to be recycled. We, as a company, will use social media to promote proper recycling procedure for our by-products.

We will source our coconuts from farms that support sustainable farming practices and initiatives. Currently 4.1 billion coconuts are harvested each year. Many of the husks end up in the ocean but there are companies finding many uses for them including: shipping pallets, cat litter, mulch, organic pest repellent (slugs), bedding/litter for reptiles, mushroom growth, mosquito repellent and FUEL! Yes, fuel! Coconut husks can be transformed into a value-added fuel source which can replace wood and other traditional fuel sources. In terms of the availability and costs of coconut husks, they have good potential for use in power plants. The power of plants!

Regain is not just good for you, it is good for the planet. Our goal is to also create a charity that raises money for the planet, people and animals. 5% of Momentum Power Foods proceeds and 1% from Momentum Fitness and Health will go to this charity. Momentum Fitness Companies looks to create a lasting legacy of health for people and the planet.

How Did Regain Begin?

I am the founder of Momentum Fitness and Health and Momentum Power Foods which produces Regain. Momentum Fitness and Health was created after my own health struggles and after becoming a personal trainer and health coach. In my late 20’s my own health was at risk. I drank, smoked and ate fast food almost daily. I had all the health problems to go with it too. By 28 I was already taking 3 daily pills. I decided I was not going to go down that path. My first step was to start exercising. At the time I was 30lbs over weight and within 6 months I was able to get down to a good weight. However, some of my health problems remained. Next to go was smoking and a reduction in alcohol consumption. I needed one more step and that was to clean up my nutrition. Processed foods and fast food were almost completely eliminated from my diet. Once I did that, I felt so good that I wanted to run 5k races and that blossomed into marathons and half-iron distance races.

I needed a natural recovery drink to compliment my new lifestyle. After reading up on coconut water and tart cherry juice I decided to mix the two together in my shaker cup. I used this combination for a couple of years before I started adding some extra juices like lemon and lime. Someone said to me, “I would buy this.” That was all I needed to hear, and I began to find the right recipe. I needed to make sure each ingredient was free of additives and contained a complete electrolyte profile. I have been taste-testing with minor league and teenage athletes as well as gym members and even a couple of cancer patients going through chemotherapy for the past few months and have received almost nothing but positive reviews.

We aim for production in 2019 after some crowdfunding early in the year through IndieGoGo. Currently we are still taste-testing and in brand recognition mode. If you’d like to get involved or schedule a taste test you can follow Regain Your Momentum on Facebook or contribute to our GoFundMe campaign of the same name. Soon the sports drink market will have a better solution to your hydration needs and help you Regain Your Momentum better.